


Make your choice

by BecauseImClassy



Category: Daredevil (TV)
Genre: F/M, Karen is stubborn, Matt is stubborn, Romance, arguing leads to making out, but everyone's clothes stay on
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-20
Updated: 2016-02-20
Packaged: 2018-05-22 02:00:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,182
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6066412
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BecauseImClassy/pseuds/BecauseImClassy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Karen wants Matt. Matt wants Karen too, but doesn't want to admit it.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Make your choice

Karen has been waiting for a good opportunity. She knows what she wants, but indirect methods have not been yielding results.

She had been shocked, of course, when she learned the truth about the Devil of Hell’s Kitchen—that Matt, her boss, her friend, is the man in the mask; that he possesses enhanced senses that compensate for his blindness in ways she never could have guessed. It’s taken some time, and some hard thinking, to sort out her feelings. But before, she was definitely attracted to both Matt and Daredevil, so it’s actually a relief to know that they’re the same man. One man, who is now doubly attractive to her.

But her attempts at flirting have gotten her nowhere. Matt keeps deflecting, never unfriendly, but resolutely declining to pick up what she’s putting down. She would conclude he’s just not interested and give up, only…he’s not very good at schooling his facial expressions. He’s been smiling a lot when she’s around. Foggy makes him grin, but Karen brings out more subtle expressions—gentle smiles, pensive smiles, distracted smiles if he’s working hard. His dark glasses may hide his eyes, but his mouth has been giving the game away.

Or at least, giving her enough grounds for hope that she’s decided to approach him more directly, the next time the two of them are alone for more than a few minutes.

Matt knows perfectly well that Karen is attracted to him. Her heartbeat tells him, her breathing, the flush of her skin, the sound of her voice. He’s attracted to her too, he’d be enjoying her flirting, only he’s a dangerous man to be close to, and he he can’t bear the thought of her getting hurt. He won’t push her away entirely. He knows he needs his friends, they make him stronger, make him better. But he will make sure she never becomes more than a friend. No matter how much he wants her to. Her safety is more important.

And now Foggy has gone out to lunch with Marci, and Karen and Matt are alone in the office. They eat their lunch together at her desk, working on a case and discussing possible lines of inquiry that might help their client’s defense. Karen’s not a lawyer, but she’s an excellent researcher, smart and determined, and she’s proven her usefulness to Nelson and Murdock for far more than just her secretarial skills.

But soon Matt stands up to return to his office, and Karen doesn’t want to let this chance slip away.

“Uh, Matt? Can I ask you something?” She stands too, feeling suddenly nervous. He turns back toward her.

“Yes?”

“I, um…” She takes a deep breath and blurts out, “Would you like to go out with me?”

For a long moment he doesn’t move. Possibly he doesn’t even breathe. _Oh. Oh, damn._ He should have known she’d force the issue eventually. He sighs and shakes his head.

“That’s…not a good idea, Karen.” She waits, until it’s clear he’s not going to add anything more.

“Not a good idea. Why not?”

“Why—Karen, you know who I am, what I do. What kind of enemies I have. Being closer to me than you already are would just put a target on your back. I decided months ago that I can’t let you be put in harm’s way because of me.”

She stares at him, anger beginning to blossom in her gut. “Wait now. You _decided?_ I don’t get any say in the matter?”

He frowns. “I told you I’ll keep you safe. That’s what matters here. You’ve been through plenty already without me putting you in more danger.”

“Yeah, I have, and none of it had anything to do with you. The people who have hurt me have been my own enemies, not…well okay, they were your enemies too, but they targeted me because of my own actions, not yours!” She stands in front him, arms folded. He can’t see the sparks snapping in her eyes, but he hears the anger clearly in her voice. He doesn’t want to fight, he knows how stubborn she can be, but he has to convince her.

“All the more reason for me not to add to your danger. You find enough of it on your own without me making it worse.”

“How is it dangerous for us to be together?”

“You know how. My enemies will target you if they know there’s someone I…that I care about.”

“That’s if they know there’s someone that Daredevil cares about. Daredevil’s enemies have no reason to give a damn who Matt Murdock cares about. The danger is _not_ in us being together, it’s in your identity being found out. And, frankly, if that ever happens then Foggy and I will be targeted anyway, just for being your friends. We’re the people closest to you, whether you and I get together or not.” She frowns and taps her foot. “And anyway, dammit, you do not get to just make unilateral decisions about my personal life!”

“You don’t get to make unilateral decisions about mine, either.”

“I am not being unilateral, I am _discussing_ the matter with you, which is what you should have done before you _decided.”_ He looks so unhappy that her anger fades, a little. He hasn’t said he doesn’t want her, which is the one answer that would have made her give in. If he didn’t want her, he might be looking awkward right now, or embarrassed, or even sympathetic. But instead he looks torn, and miserable, and still determined, damn him. She knows how stubborn he can be.

He confirms everything she’s thinking when he says quietly, “Karen, I’m sorry you’re angry. You have a right to be angry. But I won’t put you in danger. No matter how much we both want this, we can’t. It’s not safe.”

_We both want this._

She steps closer, snakes one arm around his neck, and kisses him. He knows he should stop her, but for a moment he is simply stunned by sensation. Her lips are warm and soft against his, he can feel the heat coming off her skin. She smells like citrus and lavender and desire. Her heartbeat thunders in his ears, almost as loud as his own. He lifts his hands to push her away, but the tip of her tongue slides across his lower lip like a live wire, and with a groan he pulls her closer instead. He’s wanted to do this for months, and it’s suddenly much harder to remember why he shouldn’t.

Karen feels relief in a corner of her mind as one arm goes around her waist, his other hand cupping her cheek. She hadn’t been entirely sure how he would respond. But he’s definitely kissing back, holding her close, and the pleasure of it is dizzying. His lips leave hers, but only so they can travel over the rest of her face, tracing a heated path up her cheeks, across her eyebrows, along her hairline. He exhales a warm breath as his tongue brushes the tender skin just in front of her ear and her breath catches.

His glasses are pressing on her face, she takes them off him and reaches blindly to set them on her desk. Her other hand strokes his hair, fingers combing through the soft mass. She tugs on it, tipping his head up so she can get her mouth on his neck, pressing her lips where the pulse beats, hearing his breathy moan as she tastes his skin, feeling the stubble beneath his jaw. He pulls his face back down to hers, lips searching until they find hers once more.

His tongue touches her lips, and she opens to him. He softly explores her mouth, sucking on her lower lip, his tongue curling around hers, as his hands start to move over her body, feeling the shape of her slender curves. They skim down her sides, over her hips, slowly stroking her ass and making her quiver, then drifting back up again. Karen smiles against his lips and runs her own hands over his shoulders, down his back, feeling the lean, muscular strength of him. 

Then she gasps as his hand stops at her breast, his thumb caressing her through what suddenly feels like far too many layers of clothing. She can feel her whole body flushing, and knows that Matt must be able to feel it too, must be able to hear her hammering heart. The thought only heats her blood even more, and she wants to touch his skin, to feel his hands and his mouth on her skin, everywhere.

Matt continues to stroke her breast, her arousal feeding his. His other hand slides over her ass again, and she makes small breathless sounds and presses herself against him. He can feel himself getting harder by the second, frustrated by all the fabric in the way, he’s aching to feel her skin against his.

Then he gasps, his legs nearly buckling as she tilts her pelvis against his. She’s almost as tall as he is, in her heels all she needs is the proper angle to have the bulge in his trousers pressing right where she wants it. She rubs against him and they both moan, clinging together, panting for breath. They’re so engrossed in each other that neither one notices the door opening.

Foggy stops dead in the doorway, taking in the scene before him. He’s startled, but not really all that surprised. He’s been pretty sure for quite a while that Matt and Karen were into each other, and he’s glad they finally seem to have figured it out. On the other hand, this is their workplace, and they look about ready to start tearing each other’s clothes off any minute. 

So.

Foggy steps in and bangs the door closed behind him, then walks past them to his own door, exclaiming cheerfully, “Break it up, you two, what if I’d been a prospective client?” He grins at the two shocked faces turned toward him, and disappears into his office.

Karen turns back to Matt, whispers “Oh no,” and tries desperately not to laugh, burying her face against his shoulder. But then—“Matt! Didn’t you hear him coming, why didn’t you say something?”

“But I didn’t.” Matt shakes his head, still too shocked to even feel embarrassed that Foggy just walked in on them. “I didn’t hear him, I wasn’t noticing anything except…” He trails off, trying to process the implications. He had actually been, however briefly, oblivious to everything but Karen. The insistent background of sensory input that is his constant waking experience, overwhelmed and put aside for once.

He’s a jumble of mixed emotions, but Karen seems remarkably at ease. He raises a hand to her face and she smiles, then realizes it’s not meant as a caress. He’s reading her expression, and she keeps still to let him. His fingers trace her smile, and it’s as wide and warm as a ray of sunshine. The rest of her face is…serene. The small muscles around her eyes and in her forehead are relaxed, holding no tension. She’s happy. Unmistakably, radiantly happy. Because of him? he rejects the the though as impossibly egotistical, but the evidence is right in front of him. She’s not been acting merely out of lust, not just trying to prove a point or to win the fight. Her beaming happiness shakes his determination as much as any of her arguments. (And her arguments, he has to admit, are valid.)

“Karen, I’m still not sure about this.” He speaks barely above a whisper, mindful of Foggy in the next room. But even as he says it, one hand is sliding through her hair, it’s like silk, he could never get tired of touching it. She leans into his touch and whispers back, “You’re undermining your own argument there, counsellor.” He smiles and presses his forehead against hers.

“Just because I want to, that doesn’t make it a good idea.”

“Just because the world’s a dangerous place, that doesn’t make it a bad idea. But either way, Foggy’s got a point.” She sighs and steps back, but doesn’t entirely break contact, taking hold of his hands. “We’re at work, this isn’t the time or the place. So here’s what we’re going to do.” He hears determination in her voice, but no anger. “Tonight, we’ll go someplace where we can talk, and we will figure this out. Together.” Her voice turns stern on the last word, but it’s no more than he deserves. He nods and squeezes her hands.

“All right, we’ll talk it through. Together.” He lets go of her hands, turns toward his office, then turns back. “Uh, my glasses?” She retrieves them and puts them in his hand, and he smiles and walks away as she takes a deep, steadying breath and sits down at her desk.

Both of them are pretty sure they’re not going to get much work done the rest of the afternoon.


End file.
